Family Time

This week Dad, Abby, Catherine, and Cayla are in town!!! I am so excited for them to be here and to show them the beautiful city and country I have been living in.  I didn't realize how much I missed them until I spent the day with them on Sunday.


I met them at their hotel in Madrid on Sunday at 10am.  It was a very early morning for me to say the least.  We walked around the Calle Mayor in Madrid exploring the Plaza Mayor.  Dad enjoyed looking at the old coins in Plaza Mayor.  Along with TRYING to show off his "Spanish".  We walked around and made it to the Prado.  The Prado is a very famous museum in Spain.  It was quite boring because I don't really enjoy going to museums where there are just old painting of nude people.  Although they are incredible, and the history behind some of the pieces and artists are amazing.

Afterwards we grabbed lunch at VIPS, which we decided is the Applebees of Spain.  They had a bunch of American food and I enjoyed a club sandwich that tasted like heaven on earth!  We quickly found out the difficulties of trying to describe what "gluten-free" meant.  When they brought out a salad without croutons for Catherine, it had crispy chicken on it.  Although that was probably a mistake on our part not reading the menu close enough, someone I described that she needed a new one.  I was pretty proud of myself.

They were all feeling pretty tired and jet-legged after lunch, so we went back to the hotel to take a nap. That is when I received the best gift ever, my peanut butter!!!!! Boy have I missed eating that! It was like being reunited with a long lost love.  I have enjoyed dipping my finger in the past couple of days.

I went back to Toledo after we ate dinner for the week because I have class.  Tomorrow (Wednesday) they will come to Toledo, and we leave on Thursday afternoon for Barcelona.  I am excited to spend more time with them.  And I'm not going to lie, it's been nice having someone around who will buy my food and transportation! ;)

After this weekend, it will already be the week that I leave for spring break and then March is over! Where has time gone??

Un abrazo,
Anna

A-Team in Granada, Spain

This past weekend I traveled to Granada, Spain.  The reason that the title of this post is called the "A-Team" is because all 7 of us who traveled together have names that start with the letter A; Anna, Allie, Amanda, Abby, Alisa, Alex, and Alec.  We thought it was pretty funny.

Granada is a beautiful city.  On our bus ride down, believe it or not, there was a huge snow storm that went through central Spain!! It was incredible! There were cars spinning out everywhere, and traffic was moving very slow.  But our bus driver kept plowing through, which made me nervous, but clearly the bus was heavy enough to handle the snow.  We all felt like we were in the middle of a Minnesota winter.  And boy am I glad not to have to deal with that everyday! But apparently, it is the first time in 10 years that Granada or more of southern Spain has seen snow.

We arrived Thursday night and surprisingly found our hostel fairly easily.  Knowing how confusing Spanish streets can be, we were proud of ourselves and had great directions.  Friday morning we woke up and went to the Alhambra, which is a famous castle in Spain.  It is what Granada is known for and was in the running to be one of the 7 wonders of the world.  It was beautiful to say the least and the architecture was amazing!

After we spent 4 hours there, we went to get tapas, and then the girls left the boys to go shopping and to get lunch.  We went to this street called Alcaicería which is full of Arab shops.  I finally found my pair of earrings that I had lost that were from Spain, so it was safe to say it was a successful shopping spree! That night we just hung out, and made some pasta.

Friday half the group when on this day excursion of hiking, rock climbing, and puenting (bungee jumping off a bridge).  I didn't go on this because I didn't want to spend the money, and I had already done my thrilling adventure in Switzerland.  Instead, I joined up with other people from out program and we went on our own hike.

It was quite the workout but the views were incredible in the Sierra Nevadas.  That lasted all day, and we went for ice cream afterwards as our reward.

All of us came home Sunday with a lot of homework to do... So that was a good way to end the weekend.  But I am so excited to have Dad, Abby, Catherine, and Cayla come visit me in just under a week!! It will be nice to relax at the end of the week, and then spend the next week with the family!

I LOVE SWITZERLAND!!!

I am absolutely obsessed with the country of Switzerland!! It was the most beautiful place I have ever been in my life!! It was the first time that I have seen a mountain range in person (and not from a plane) in my life, and I am so grateful to have that be the Swiss Alps.  This trip was especially cool for my because my mom's side of the family's heritage is Swiss.

We (my two girlfriends and I) went to Interlaken, Switzerland for the weekend.  We took a flight that brought us to Geneva, and then took a train to Interlaken.  Normally, the transportation part of our trips are usually pretty easy.  Unfortunately, we had some major road bumps this time.  Our flight landed at about 11-11:30 in Geneva.  We were planning on taking the 12:30am train to Interlaken.  We knew that we would have some layovers, and transfers along the way.  When we got to our huge 4 hour layover, we did not realize that the entire train station was outside.... So it was 1:30 in the morning and we had no where to go.  Luckily, before we had left the airport, we had met a guy named Jack who was also going to Interlaken, and he traveled with us during this whole mess.  So since we didn't want to sit outside, we walked around this Swiss city to try to find something open...  But it was 1:30 in the morning and nothing was....

We found an alcove between a Starbucks and some other stores that blocked some of the wind and proceeded to wait until it was time to catch the next train.  It was miserable, but all 3 of us felt much safer knowing there was a male with us instead of just 3 lost females.  Eventually we made our way to a bar/club to warm up before we found our train at 5:45 am.  It was one of the longest nights of my life to say the least.  But once we finally got back on the train, we were excited to make it to Interlaken.

Check in wasn't until 2pm so when we arrived at 8am we had to keep ourselves busy.  We went and got omelets (which were amazing!) and did some shopping around town.  I am proud to say that I bought 11 chocolate bars while there! The chocolate was amazing and the town of Interlaken is adorable.

After we checked in, we took a quick nap, freshened up, and went to a chocolate show! They showed us how they make chocolate at a chocolate shop and all the steps that goes into creating the cocoa to receiving the ingredients in Switzerland.  It was really cool, and we got a voucher to pick out our own chocolate!

The chocolate show.

 

After going to bed at 8:30pm, we awoke the next morning to our thrilling activity.  We have been recommended by most people to try the canyon swing in Grindelwald, Switzerland, a little ski town just 20 minutes from Interlaken.  Of course, we decide it's a must.  After climbing/walking up to the top of the canyon, you jump from the 85 meter ledge into the canyon while just having a rope attached to you.  The free fall lasted 4 seconds long, which was long enough in my book!  I have never experienced such a strange feeling in my life.  It is very indescribable.  I am very proud of myself for doing this because I was very hesitant to agree to it, but it was totally worth it!  Here is the link to the video before I jumped: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iw8OpnSaQ6U

The canyon

Pre-jump

After our thrilling experience, we went back to Interlaken, did some more walking around, and went to a pizzeria that night for dinner.  We woke up the next morning and made our 11 hour journey back to Toledo.  Overall this trip was one of the best I have ever experienced, and it will definitely not be the last time I will go to Switzerland in my lifetime.

This week we have a normal week except for tomorrow is my birthday!!  On Thursday, I am off to Granada, Spain for the weekend!

A week of stress....

This weekend was pretty uneventful for the most part.  I went on a couple hikes, which was nice to get outside and exercise.  But the majority of the weekend I spent studying.... Not very fun at all.  I found it hard to want to study because I don't have the same stress level with classes here, as I do at the U.  So my motivation level was very low... But exams are this week and it is crucial that I do well.

After this dreadful week is over, I will be off to Interlaken, Switzerland for the weekend.  I am beyond excited!! This is the number one place on my list of places to go!  Tune in next week to hear the adventures of Switzerland!

Weekend of Studying...

I hope everyone had a good Valentine's day and got to spend it with the people you love.  Yesterday, I went on about a 5 mile walk with one of my friends.  It goes around the city and has great views.  Valentine's day night, the fund put on a special dinner for everyone.  We had some great food, a king and queen of the night were crowned, there was candy, and chocolate fondu for dessert.  It was a lot of fun to hang out with friends and listen to music.  We jammed out to our favorite spanish hits as well as some Adele and the Macarena.

In Spain, they celebrate Valentine's day very differently.  Usually, only people who have significant others celebrate the day.  Unlike in the United States, whether or not you have a significant other, its a day to cherish and appreciate the people you love and the people that love you.  One of the program coordinators gave a speech about it, acknowledging that today may be a more difficult day for some students because we are away from home.

Everyone seemed to be in good spirits and we all enjoyed ourselves.  That night, we went to a going away party at a bar because one of the bartenders is moving back to Brazil.  The bar is called Dragos, and is usually a 10 minute walk from the fund.  But they are opening up a second one that is literally a 30 second walk from the fund.  It is not technically open yet, but thats where the party was held.  It will be dangerously close when it does open.  But it was a blast and felt like a high school basement party.  

Next week we have exams.... So this weekend will be focused on studying and relaxing, and preparing for next week.  After exams are over I will be off to Switzerland!

Ten un buen fin de semana!

London!

This past weekend I was in London, England.  There are two DGs that are studying abroad there so I went to visit and stay with them.  It was a blast! I have already been to London when I was in 8th grade, but this experience was still amazing.  It was great to see my friends and see how they are experiencing their study abroad.

A cute street corner.

London is a HUGE city! I feel like I could spend the whole semester there and never see all of it.  And London is also surprisingly expensive! It's amazing how much more the pound is compared to the euro.  It was definitely worth the trip though.

On Friday, we went and did the normal touristy stuff; saw Big Ben, Westminster, etc.  We also took a boat ride down the Thames River which was really cool because you got to see a lot of London in a short period of time.  We also had lunch at a pub and had some delicious fish and chips.  I don't think I have ever eaten anything so good. And it was definitely a change from my normal Spanish food.  That night we went home and made some shrimp pasta, which was also sent from the gods.  That night we went to the biggest night club in London.  Spent a little too much to get in, but it was unreal to see and the dancing was a blast.

Tasty fish and chips with cider.

Saturday, we were going to go to Camden Market, but it was rainy.  So we took our time leaving in the morning and went on a Harry Potter walking tour. It wasn't as good as I expected but it was still cool to see where they shot scenes, how long they had to close these very popular tube stations, and other cool facts about the city.  Our tour guide was very knowledgable and it was fun to hear what he had to say.  Afterwards, we went to King's Cross station to take the classic pictures with the 9 3/4 cart.  It was fun and there was a huge line of people.

I also revisited the spot where I was left at the train station when I was last in London.  It brought back great memories, as I watched my family leave in the tube.

Sunday we had to get up at the crack of dawn to catch our flight and ended up waiting an extra hour because we thought the tubes opened an hour earlier than they did... 12 hours later, we were back in Toledo.

I decided that I am going to start keeping a journal.  One of the girls I visited dad kept a journal during his study abroad, and she read it before she left.  She said it was so cool to see what he did and all the crazy stuff he added that wouldn't be appropriate for a blog. ;)  She is also keeping one, and it inspired me to start one. So in 30 years, I can look back and remember the amazing experience I had.

Also, our London friends are going to make it to Toledo for my 21ST BIRTHDAY! I am SO EXCITED! I was bummed that I couldn't share my birthday with my college friends.  Their spring break is that week and they are traveling throughout Spain.  So they are making a pit stop in Toledo.  It will be a lot of fun and I can't wait.

This week is my only weekend off for the rest of the semester (....scary...).  Between when my family comes, and other travels, my last weekend here will be my next weekend in Toledo.  I am very excited to relax and do some more exploring of the city.

Toledo Carnival

Well this past weekend I was in London.  I will make a new post tomorrow about that.  I have a lot of homework to do before tomorrow so I can't dedicate time to blogging today.

But I do want to briefly touch on the Carnival that happened in Toledo this weekend and at the end of last week.  In Spain, every city has their own Carnival festival before lent starts and before the Santa Semana (which is the week before Easter, that 90% of the Spanish population has off work.  Also my "Spring Break").  Everyone dresses up in costume.  It is like a Halloween on steroids for 4 days straight.

On Wednesday night, my friends and I went out for it.  We bought masks as costumes and enjoyed the beginning of the festival.  I was sad I was going to be in London that weekend.  You have to pick your battles at this point.  But the kids who stayed in Toledo said it was a blast.  People stay up until sunrise.  And there were fireworks to end the festival last night.  I enjoyed my one night out and drank Cava (Yes Ned, I finally bought some!).  The Cava was amazing and only cost 6 euros!  But don't worry, I didn't drink it all myself!

Check tomorrow for the London post!